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The BCCI is reported to have made an exemption from the existing laws to allow Gautam Gambhir to be a part of the selection meeting for the Australia tour.
Team India will be under pressure to turn around their fortunes for the Australia tour. (Image: AFP)
It has been revealed that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have overlooked already set laws within the board to allow Gautam Gambhir to be a part of the selection meeting for the upcoming tour of Australia.
According to a report by the Press Trust of India (PTI), the Indian Cricket Board decided to make an exemption regarding Gambhir’s involvement in selection considering the importance of the Border-Gavaskar series against the mighty Aussies.
“Gautam Gambhir was given access which his predecessors Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid didn’t have. The BCCI’s rule book doesn’t allow coaches to be a part of the selection committee meetings, but for the Australia tour selection meeting, an exception was made.
The head coach was allowed to attend considering the magnitude of the tour,” a senior BCCI source told PTI on the condition of anonymity.
While the full details regarding Gambhir’s suggestions remain unclear, the report suggests that the likes of Nitish Reddy and Harshit Rana were brought into the squad at the Head Coach’s insistence. Rana despite being called up to the Indian squad on multiple occasions, is yet to make his international debut, while Reddy has made his T20I debut in the recently concluded series against Bangladesh at home.
Gambhir will hope that his selection calls will prove to be enough to help the Indian side come back to winning ways. The side had suffered a 0-3 series defeat on home soil against New Zealand which has put even more pressure on the Indian side as it was the first time India suffered a Test series defeat on home soil after 12 years, and their first whitewash in a home Test series with 3 or more games as well.
The Indian batting unit will be expected to turn around their poor run of form shown in the New Zealand Test series as their chances of making it to the World Test Championship also hang in the balance. India would have to win four and draw one Test in the five games against Australia to ensure that they secure a spot for the big prize.
